Popular by Alissa Grosso, Character Interview: Nordica

Character Interview: Nordica

1.  What was going through your head the first time you met Hamilton?

I thought she was an angel disguised as a high school girl. 

2.  How is it being the youngest member of the clique?

I always feel about three steps behind everyone else.

3.  How do you think being in Hamilton's clique has helped you?

I would be nothing without Hamilton and the clique. I owe everything to them.

4.  How do you think being in Hamilton's clique has hurt you?

Then again, maybe I would have been happier being nothing. It certainly would make life less stressful.

5.  Photography is one of your passions, what led you to realizing you were a good photographer?

I don't think I'm a very good photographer. I mean, it's not like my work will be in magazines or newspapers or even the yearbook. I just like being able to snap pictures of people and preserve moments forever. Really, the camera does all the work. I just press the buttons.

6.  If you could do anything to make your mark in your Senior year next year, what do you think it would be?

Do you have any idea how terrifying this question is? I have no idea how to make my mark. I wish I could just fast forward through all of senior year. But I can't. So, I don't know what I'll do.

7.  If you had to describe yourself, how would you?

I'm just an ordinary person who happens to be friends with some pretty amazing people. So, most days I feel like a fish out of water, or at least like a little fish who somehow wound up swimming with a school of much bigger fish.

About the Book:
For reigning popularity queen Hamilton Best, the very idea of graduation is filled with fear. She's always been the star of Fidelity High's most exclusive clique, idolized for her perfection and her fabulous parties—you know you're "in" when you make Hamilton's guest list. As high school draws to a close, Hamilton is about to lose everything that makes her who she is.

To make matters worse, the clique is slowly coming apart at the seams. Although the hand-picked members—Olivia, Zelda, Nordica, and Shelly—all have their own agendas, desires, and secrets, they do have one thing in common: they're desperate to break away from Hamilton. Yet Hamilton has the biggest and most shocking secret of all, one that only her devoted boyfriend Alex knows. If the truth got out, it would completely destroy her fragile world.

And she'll do anything to keep that from happening.

About the Author: 

Early Days and Education

Alissa was born in Hackensack, New Jersey in 1975. She grew up in the Garden State living in Hackensack, Ramsey and later Byram Township, NJ.

She graduated from Lenape Valley Regional High School in Stanhope, NJ where she ran on the cross country and track teams. She earned a B.A. in English from Rutgers University graduating with highest honors and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa.

Professional Life

Alissa worked for Waterloo Foundation for the Arts while attending college as well as after graduating from college in a number of different capacities. She later worked for the Eastern Monroe Public Library in Stroudsburg, PA where she worked in both the circulation and youth services departments, and was the Children's Coordinator for Norway Memorial Library in Norway, ME. She also worked as an editor and writer for Journal Newspapers in White Haven, PA. She presently works as an independent library sales representative for Unique Books, Inc. and is the author of the forthcoming YA novel Popular.

What She's Doing Now

After living for several years in Pennsylvania and briefly in Maine, Alissa has returened to New Jersey and presently lives in Clinton.  When she isn't visiting libraries or busy playing outdoors, she is hard at work on her next novel. 

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Giveaway:
Teen Book Scene is hosting a giveaway of one copy of Popular, and it's open internationally.  Just comment on this post and for more entries to win, go to other posts during the tour and comment on them.  Giveaway will end a few days after the end of the tour and will be announced on A Good Addiction.  Be sure and come back on June 7th when I have my character interview with Nordica, for another chance to enter.